Message of peace for Indonesia from world's 'little angels'

Message of peace for Indonesia from world's 'little angels'

Yusuf Susilo Hartono, Contributor, Jakarta

"Little Angels" from around the world are bringing messages of
peace to Indonesia, a country riddled by economic, social,
political and moral crises.

The children convey their messages in paintings displayed at
the National Gallery on Jl. Medan Merdeka Timur No.4, opposite
Gambir railway station, Central Jakarta.

The exhibition, which began on Jan. 17, runs through Jan. 27
and may be extended for another three or four days if attendance
is unusually high.

The works exhibited all reflect children's honesty in
expressing themselves, portraying a variety of objects (from
empirical, psychological up to virtual realities), techniques and
messages.

These messages in particular, are loud and clear as if the
"Little Angels" were delivering sermons to the "sinful" adults.
So the exposition is probably good for those who need to hear the
voice of honesty, such as politicians, polluters, provocateurs,
police officers, businesspeople, educators and religious leaders.

The exhibition is also good, not only for children, but also
for parents to learn why it is important for them to give their
children the freedom to express themselves to achieve better
imagination and creativity.

Held by the National Gallery in cooperation with Soka Gakkai
International and Saddharma Pundarika Indonesia, the show is
supported by UNESCO's Directorate of Art and the State Ministry
for Culture and Tourism.

Displaying 310 paintings and selected from the work of about
100,000 children from some 161 countries across the world
including Indonesia, it is part of a roving exhibition, which
started in Japan in 1995.

Indonesia is the 26th country to host the exhibition.

"After Indonesia, the Philippines will host it," said chairman
of Saddharma Pundarika Indonesia Udin Tirta, who chairs the
exhibition organizing committee.

Of course, within the seven years since the exhibition was
first held in Japan, the child painters have grown into teenagers
and the world that they have painted has certainly changed.

Nevertheless, the theme of the exhibition, "Earth: Enjoy,
Appreciate, Realize, Try, Hope" and its sub-theme, "Message of
Peace", remain vigorous in their appeal.

These children's paintings, as president of Soka Gakkai
International Daisuke Ikeda has said, are really like heaven-sent
harbingers of peace. These works of art portray the boys'
universe and the girls' palace of dreams.

"Even though the cold war has ended, the international
community is mired in acute disorder. In this context, the
precious and joyful messages from "the delegates of the future"
have become increasingly radiant," he said.

Once again, given the seven-year passage of time, one should
not expect to find Indonesian children portraying the fall of
Soeharto's New Order regime, or American kids painting the World
Trade Center tragedy with its dramatic global impact, or Afghan
children sketching the indiscriminate bombing of Afghanistan by
the U.S. and its allies.

Among the pictures on display is 11-year-old Afghan boy Elias
Wardok's black-on-white representation of a mother in a typically
Taliban burqa (female garment allowing its wearer only a
restricted view from a narrow eye opening), with a child on her
lap.

Kathleen Doly, 8, of the U.S. painted a girl with plaited hair
wearing a broad smile, one that is plain and sincere rather than
the American leaders' smile appearing on TV. Dimas, 9, one of the
three from Indonesia, depicts in his crayon drawing a mother-and-
child travel scene against a hilly backdrop.

Maligna, 10, from Laos presents a family dinner with a cat on
the floor, in a bamboo home. It strongly radiates an atmosphere
of affection, friendliness and peace.

India's A. Raja, 10, flaunts his portrait of Gandhi,
bespectacled and giving a smile of nonviolence.

The gaiety of Pakistan's Aug. 14 Independence Day celebrations
with music symbols decorating the sky is the cheerful expression
of Anum Nasio, 7, whereas Len Mao Mao, 4, has a man on horseback
as in a Chinese painting.

The woodcut style of Nuangkritthi Singto, 13, conveys the idea
of environmental damage, and by the same method Dusan Misek, 12,
demonstrates his four-headed dinosaur, with one of its heads
sneaking into a tower. Dominantly brown, this painting seems too
good by children's standards.

Indeed, in what National Gallery chief Watie Moerany described
as the biggest children's painting exhibition ever held in
Indonesia today, many of the predominantly "nontechnical"
pictures have taken heed of the "technical" aspect, although the
sources of their techniques are not much known. The works being
shown also include collages and two-dimensional graphics.

In order to enliven the event, a painting competition for
children aged 4 to 9 and a workshop have been organized as
additional highlights, besides the directorate of arts'
conferment of awards to 44 Indonesian kids winning painting
contests in ASEAN, India, China and Japan.